The Swan and the Snow
by Spearnox
Summary: Christmas is coming to Storybrooke. But Emma's having trouble sleeping because of Graham's death and Mary Margaret is an emotional wreck over David. Can they find comfort in each other that will take the pain away? Will Henry get to see his real mom on Christmas? And what trouble will Regina, and maybe even Mr. Gold cause along the way? Emma/MM White Swan - Rated:M
1. Chapter 1

**Warning before reading:**

**This story contains mature themes; such as minor sexual content, homosexuality, and (depending on how you take it) minor incest.**  
**If you don't like, then take a hike. Please. It's for your own good.**

* * *

_The Swan and the Snow_

_Chapter 1_

Emma lay in her bed, staring at the darkness that surrounded her. She couldn't sleep. There were too many thoughts swirling around in her head. More than usual. Way more than what Emma needed.

She felt cold under the covers and drew the blankets closer while letting out a sigh of frustration. She didn't even feel tired. Emma glanced at her alarm clock to see that it was only 2:46 am, hours before she had to get up for work. Yet if she kept this up, Emma would not have enough time to get a decent rest before she had to get up and going anyway. It isn't fair. Emma thought. Dealing with all the strange yet now unsurprising things that happened around Storybrooke was enough trouble with proper sleep, let alone none. And these sleepless night just weren't ending. Some nights she got three, maybe four hours of sleep if she was lucky, and others she got none. And so far, things weren't looking very promising that night for the sheriff.

Emma couldn't stand laying in her bed anymore. So she got up and walked over to her window. Emma leaned on the window pain as she watched the frozen, white flakes gracefully drifted to the ground, millions of them partially blocking her view of the Christmas lights that hung joyfully from peoples houses. It was getting close to that time of year again, very close. The people of Storybrooke seemed less stressed nowadays, since they were more focused on the Christmas season instead of Regina and Mr. Gold's suspicious and troublesome behaviours. There was no time to be concerned about that, because everyone was preparing for one of the most joyous holidays of the year. Well, everyone except for Emma.

* * *

Since the sheriff's office hadn't been that busy lately, Emma had given herself the gruelling task of reorganizing all the files and document that had accumulated over the last year. They needed to be put into storage to make room for the new files that the upcoming year would bring. And with the way Regina, Mr. Gold, and Emma had been battling as of late, she knew she'd need to make a lot more space in the filing cabinet, for sure.

Emma had just finished the "H" files and was going to take another sip of her heavily caffeinated coffee, when she heard foot steps coming towards her desk, of which she was awkwardly slumped over with one arm in mid stretch towards the coffee cup. I probably look like I'm dying. Emma thought to herself. She hoped to God it wasn't Regina. That was the last thing she wanted to deal with in her overtired state.

As Emma cautiously looked up from her desk she let out a sigh of relief. It was Mary Margaret. Emma slumped back into her chair, smiling for the first time that day. "Shouldn't you be at school?"

"Well, I'm on my prep period so I thought I'd come by to see you," Mary Margaret explained, then she lowered her head and looked to the side adding, "since you left for work before I had the chance to say good morning to you..." her voice trailed off as she glanced back and forth from Emma to the floor.

Emma felt her face warm up a bit out of embarrassment. She hadn't meant to hurt her friend's feelings. It was just she had felt annoyed and anti-social that morning from not getting any sleep. So she left before Mary Margaret had even gotten up. "Sorry... I..." Emma started, but Mary cut her off. "It's alright, you don't need to explain."

There was an awkward silence which followed, that seemed to be never ending. Then suddenly Mary Margaret said, "The school received an anonymous donation of wreathes yesterday, a whole ton of them. So this morning I let the kids decorate one each. They were so happy," Emma noticed then that the teacher had her hands behind her back. Mary Margaret paused, attempting to form an impressive sentence to explain what was to come next, but got frustrated, lightly shook her head and just blurted out, "So I made one too, for you," as she presented the wreath she had made to Emma. "I mean for your office," She added as she awkwardly handed Emma the festive decoration.

The wreath had a big, red bow tied to the bottom, with fake holly glue gunned and silver tinsel wrapped all around the rim. Nothing fancy. But Emma couldn't believe Mary Margaret had actually made it for her. "Thanks," she said, walking over to the wall, spotting a random nail sticking out, and hanging it there. It looked kind of funny since it was the only Christmas decoration in the room, but it seemed to have brought it's own Christmas feeling in along with it.

"You're welcome, I guess I better get back to the school," Mary Margaret said. Emma felt a little bummed to hear that. She was no longer feeling anti-social. She wanted company more than ever. "Oh... alright, how about we hang out tonight, go to the diner for a bit then maybe watch some TV?" Emma suggested. Mary Margaret's face lit right up. "Sounds like a date!"

Then Mary scurried out of her office, waving back to Emma as she left. Emma couldn't help but feel a little quiver in her chest and stomach as she heard Mary Margaret's voice in her head say those final words of her visit over and over again. Then she laughed to herself, finding her behaviour ridiculous, and got back to working on the filing.

* * *

The bell rang.

"Bye everyone, see you next week!" Mary Margaret Blanchard cheerfully shouted to her students as they jumped from their chairs, grabbed their coats and bags, and hurried out the classroom door as fast as they could. So it would seem. Well, all except for Henry Mills.

The boy was taking his time packing up his belongings and placing them neatly into his backpack. He had always seemed quite mature for his age, yet he was still a child who believed in fantasies. Mary Margaret thought to herself. She had given Henry the book of fairytales, hoping it would provide an escape from the hard life that he endured living as the adopted son of Regina Mills, the town Mayor. But not only did Henry love the book, he believed every word of it. He believed his teacher, Ms. Blanchard was Snow White, that David Nolan was Prince Charming, and that his adopted mother was the Evil Queen. He believed that everyone in Storybrooke was under a curse, one that took them all from the fairytale world and trapped them in a world with no magic, and having forgotten who they were. But as Mary Margaret watched Henry pack his things, she wanted to believe him because she wanted the boy to be happy.

"Ms. Blanchard?" Mary Margaret was drawn from deep thought as the boy approached her with a question. "Yes Henry?"

"Can you tell my real mom that I miss her and I want to see her?"

Henry was referring to Emma. She was Henry's biological mother. But not long after Emma had been brought to Storybrooke, Regina had forbidden that Emma see Henry. That was just how Regina worked, always thinking of herself.

Mary Margaret bent down to Henry and put a hand on his shoulder."I'm sure Emma misses you too, but you're mom doesn't want you to see her. She'll punish you and make things tough for Emma if you too are together." She explained.

"I know that, but...," Henry looked more sad then ever. If only Regina could see what she's doing to Henry. Ms. Blanchard thought. Then she said with a smile, "I'll tell her."

"Thanks!" Henry said. Then he hurried out of the classroom with a hopeful smile on his face. Maybe, he hoped, he could be with his real mom for Christmas.

* * *

Mary Margaret wrapped her scarf around her neck, burying her face in the fabric to hide it from the terrible chill in the air. She had forgotten her mittens that morning, so instead of crossing her arms over her chest too keep them warm, she had her hands tucked safely in the pockets of her coat as she walked briskly down the side walk. She was heading for Granny's Diner, which was where she would be meeting Emma for dinner. But she was going to be extremely early. Thankfully she had a book in her purse to help pass the time. Then a thought struck Mary Margaret that made her more nervous than the thought of having dinner with Emma that evening. She hoped to God that she wouldn't run into David there.

* * *

Emma was being a bit over dramatic. She kept thinking of excuses for why she needed to keep working and to cancel on Mary Margaret. She, for some reason, suddenly wanted to avoid her, work late, go home and crawl into bed after Mary had already gone to sleep. Why was she so nervous? She thought. Maybe it was from being over tired. Maybe she was going crazy. Maybe it was something more than that... No, Emma thought. I'm just over tired.

But when the time came around to close the office and head to the diner, Emma got that same quivery feeling in her chest that she had gotten during the visit from her roommate earlier that afternoon. And because of it, she decided it was best that she just go home. But then Emma thought of how sad she'd make Mary Margaret feel if she stood her up, knowing she had already ditched her this morning. She couldn't do that to her friend. So instead of walking home, Emma headed for the diner.

It was snowing again, a thin layer of white covered the recently shovelled sidewalks that Emma walked along. Emma didn't mind the breeze in the air that made the snow swirl around her face. Emma was used to the cold, having lived in an orphanage during her childhood. Being warm had been a privilege during the winter months.

As Emma walked into Granny's Diner, she spotted Mary Margaret in the far left corner of the restaurant, at a table for two, keeping to herself. As Emma walked towards her, she noticed something was wrong. Mary Margaret had an expression on her face that looked almost, broken. Like she'd break out in tears at any second.

"Mary, what's wrong?" Emma said as she approached the table and went to sit down across from her friend. As Emma spoke, Mary Margaret snapped out of what ever daydream had taken her over and gave Emma a sad smile, saying, "Oh hi."

"What happened?" Emma persisted. Mary rubbed her face with her hands. Ruby, the diner's only waitress, walked up to their table, whipping out her ticket pad and pen. "So what'll it be for you two?"

"I'll have the number 1dinner special," Emma said, then looked at Mary Margaret. She was just staring at the table, as if she was unaware that Ruby was even there to take their orders. "Just make it two of those," Emma added, and Ruby walked off towards the kitchen.

"Seriously Mary Margaret, what's going on?" Emma said, placing her hand on her friend's shoulder and giving her a little shake.

"David..." Mary started to say, eyes fixed on the table. "David and Kathryn were just here."

* * *

"Well, I think I'd like a drink, now that we're home," Emma announced as she walked into her and Mary Margaret's apartment. Mary followed her in, removing her hat and started to undo her coat. "Sounds good to me," she said sheepishly.

Emma got out the wine and poured two glasses. Then they both tossed their coats on the kitchen table, plopped on the couch and watched TV as they sipped at their wine. A romantic drama was on and they both just stared at the TV. Nothing was said. All Emma could think about was all the conversations she had overheard at the diner about Graham. People had been staying things like, "I heard Graham was secretly with Regina," and "It's strange having a heart attack at his age,".

Those words were haunting her as she tried to focus on the show, but she couldn't.

Mary Margaret was actually watching the show. And she wished she wasn't because the plot was unbelievably too much like her own life. A young girl feeling drawn to a man who was already married. She wanted to change the channel, but she didn't want to ask Emma for the remote. Mary just kept sipping her wine, trying to not let the show get to her. But she really just wanted to start crying.

After finishing a few glasses of wine, Emma set down the remainder of her latest drink on the coffee table, and sleepily moved over to Mary Margaret, where she then lay her head on her shoulder. Mary was a bit stunned, but didn't mind. She leaned her head against Emma's in return, and the two of them sat together for quite a while.

When the show was over, Mary turned her head to Emma and said, "Hey, I'm gonna lay down now," in a soft voice. Eyes still closed, Emma lifted her head, and stood up from the couch. "You can stay if you want," Mary said after she had gotten comfortable. With alcohol clouding her thought, Emma automatically laid next to Mary Margaret on the couch, and sleepily put an arm around her. Emma didn't have much going on in her head, except for thinking about how warm it was being next to her. And Mary Margaret was so sleepy, and maybe even a bit drunk herself, that she was only glad to have someone to hold her.

So the two of them held each other as they slept the rest of the night.

* * *

Emma awoke, her head feeling heavy and her body was shift. She groaned and shifted her legs to stretch. But as she did this she realized her leg was intertwined with someone else's, That was when Emma realized that she was lying next to Mary Margaret on the couch. Emma's heart started to race and her chest quivered even more. They were so close to each other. Emma couldn't help but look into Mary Margaret's sleeping face. She really did love her. Emma couldn't deny anymore that it wasn't a love as simple as friendship. It was all too clear now with the way she was reacting. All Emma wanted to do in that moment was kiss those sleeping lips of Mary's. And just as Emma was thinking about actually going for it, Mary began to wake up.

Her eyes opened and stared straight into Emma's. "Morning," Emma whispered. She figured they were both going to be a bit hung over after the wine last night. "Yeah, good morning," Mary replied, realizing as well that she had slept on the couch all night with Emma. It was the weirdest feeling. Mary had never realized how much she loved being so close to Emma. And at that moment she didn't want it to end.

Emma sat up on the couch, looked back at Mary and said, "So how'd you sleep?" as she ran her fingers through her messed up blond locks. "Quite well actually," Mary said with a smile, as she rolled over to lay on her back and look up at Emma. "I think... I think I dreamed of something quite nice," She added as she tried to remember what she had seen in her dreams. "Oh lucky you. What'd you dream of?" Emma asked.

Then suddenly Mary Margaret started to blush as her memories came back to her. She had dreamed about being with Emma, loving Emma. She had dreamed about kissing her. In her dream she had only done so on her forehead, but now in that moment, Mary wanted to go a bit further. She could feel it in her chest. She could see it in her mind. But she knew she shouldn't. She couldn't. Emma would hate her for it, she thought. Mary just sat up and pulled her knees up to her face saying, "It doesn't matter," while trying not to make it obvious.

A thought crossed Emma's mind that Mary might have dreamed of David. Emma wondered if she should let it go. But if she did there would be an awkward silence, and she didn't want that. So she persisted in asking. "Of course it matters, how often do you have a dream that you really enjoy?"

Mary thought about it then said, "Not often..."

Then she turned and sat on the edge of the couch beside Emma. "All right, well...," she started. But then she looked into Emma's eyes and realized Emma was looking into her's as well. There was something there, between them. A force that wanted to pull them together. Mary could feel it. Mary wanted it. And she thought she could see it in Emma's eyes too.

Then Emma, with a sudden jolt of courage, moved her face closer to Mary's, pressing their noses together and asked, "Was I in your dream by chance?"

"Yes," Mary Margaret said.

Emma then leaned in to kiss her. But the courage she had just had, slipped away. Their lips lightly brushed together as Emma began to lower her head and back away. It was all over. She thought. When suddenly Mary Margaret's hands reached up and guided Emma's face back to where it needed to be. And they kissed.

The gentle kiss seemed like a eternity before they reluctantly parted. But then they both looked at each other, fearing that the other might get mad. They were both just afraid, and confused.

"What...?" Emma started to mumble. "I know...," Mary Margaret replied, blushing more that ever. But then they the both looked back at each other and started to kiss again, and this time deeper and more intense than before. Emma's hands cupped Mary's face, and Mary's hand began to run through Emma's hair. Then Emma started to kiss down Mary's neck, making her sigh in delight.

But then suddenly the phone rang. Emma started to laugh, saying "I'll get that."

Emma walked over to the phone, Mary Margaret following her with her eyes. And with a disappointed smile, Emma picked up the phone. After a minute on the phone, Emma hung up and said, "Looks like I've got some Regina issues to deal with, I'm gonna have to take care of this now," as she reached for her coat that was still lying next to Mary's on the table from the night before. "Can I tag along? I have nothing better to do...," Mary asked. Emma put on her red coat and walked back over to Mary who was still sitting on the couch. She lay a simple, quick kiss on her lips and replied, "Better not, I'll be back before you know it," "Alright," Mary Margaret said with a sigh.

Then as Emma was about to leave, Mary said, "Wait, um...," and with a hurry in her voice, Emma interjected saying, "Don't worry, we'll talk about it when I get back."

And with a reassuring smile back to her roommate, Emma closed the door behind her and made her way out into the cold.

* * *

**Thank-you for reading the beginning of my new (and first...) Once Upon A Time fan fiction. I hope you enjoyed it and I would love for you to leave an honest (but kind) review, telling me what you liked, didn't like, and what you would like to see in future chapters. If you want to at least... I don't plan on this being a big story anyway. Just a few chapters long. I'm not sure what should happen next though...**

**If you don't like this pairing and have nothing nice to say to me, then just forget you read this. I don't even know why you would have in the first place... :/**

**With that said, I look forward to hearing from people who are fans of the show as well. I love this show and would never want to disgrace it. Thank-you again. :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**Warning before reading:**

**This story contains mature themes; such as minor sexual content, homosexuality, and (depending on how you take it) minor incest.**  
**If you don't like, then take a hike. Please. It's for your own good.**

* * *

_The Swan and the Snow_

_Chapter 2_

A ton of snow had fallen over night. And being the weekend, not many people were up yet. So the sidewalks hadn't been shovelled. But as Emma walked over the snow to her car, she noticed that the town workers were starting to appear on the streets, shovelling and plowing the roads.

Emma drove slowly to the Sheriff Station, taking extra caution so as to not slide the car into something. When Emma got there, Regina was standing outside the station's front door, looking more pissed off than ever.

"Why weren't you here this morning, Ms. Swan?" Regina asked in her normally irritated tone. Regina's voice chattered as she talked, she was obviously cold in her expensive, black parka. As Emma approached the mayor, she replied saying, "I thought I'd sleep in this morning, since it's the weekend and all."

Regina seemed to ignore Emma's response and continued on talking.

"You need to come to my house at once. I came to the station first because I thought you'd already be here," Then Regina walked back to her car and drove away, with Emma not far behind her.

When they got to the mayor's house, Regina directed Emma into her backyard where she was met with a rather odd situation. There were tons of foot prints every where in the snow. And right in the centre of the yard was a huge, dark red stain. As Emma walked closer she realized the prints where actually that of large paws, and the red was blood. What ever had been bleeding, had been dragged away back into the forest. The trail of blood and the flattened snow prove it.

"What the crap..." Emma said.

"I know, I saw it when I woke up this morning," Regina started to say as she walked up beside Emma, looking at the mystery before them. "I don't remember hearing anything last night. I'm thinking it was probably a wolf and a deer judging by the prints left behind,"

"Well yes, but wolves don't even live around here," Emma said back after a moment of examining the blood. It's real, Emma thought. Regina wasn't just pulling something on her. She looked over at Regina, who actually seemed quite worried.

"Ms. Swan, this animal has travelled away from where it's supposed to be. It could be rabid, which makes it extremely dangerous. It could wander into tow-" Emma cut Regina off as her voice was progressing in volume. "What am I supposed to do? I'm not going out there in the woods to be mauled by a diseased wolf."

Regina pondered this for a moment, staring at the bloodied snow and weighing her options in her head. Emma kept her eyes on Regina's frustrated expression, looking for any hints that may lead to what the mayor was thinking. Then Regina said, "I want you to stay here over night and keep watch. And if it comes back, you're going to kill it."

Emma stood up and faced Regina, who had her arms crossed over her chest, to protect her from the cold wind that was beginning to pick up. Emma realized that Regina must have been extremely concerned about this wolf, because staying in her house meant being closer to Henry. And that was not allowed, according to Regina at least.

"What if it doesn't come back? How long do you want me to stay here for?" Emma asked. " I guess when the new year has started we can assume it's moved on."

Emma couldn't have felt more bummed. Christmas was only a few days away, and it looked like she'd have to spend it with the mayor. But then, she realized seeing Henry would be worth it.

Then Regina added, "This doesn't mean you can see Henry. You are not to bother us."

Emma nodded to please the mayor, trying to ignore the hope killing words, and asked, "Can I leave now?" "Fine," the mayor replied.

As Emma was walking back to her car, she shouted, "You might want to get the hose and wash away that blood. Wouldn't want to give anyone the idea that you might have actually killed an innocent dog back there or something."

Then Emma headed home.

* * *

"Maybe it's a trick"

Hearing Mary Margaret saying that made Emma chuckle a bit.

"Maybe she's made it her goal now to ruin your Christmas."

Emma's heart fluttered a bit seeing her roommate in the same place on the couch as she had left her that morning, though now with her nose in a book. Mary had abruptly sat up at the sound of her coming through the door and had asked her right away what had happened. And as Emma explained the situation to her, Emma went into the kitchen to put the hot water on. She was in desperate need of a hot chocolate.

"I don't think so. The blood and deer fur seemed pretty real to me, along with all the tracks left behind," Emma got two mugs out from the cupboard, setting them beside the kettle, then added, "And she must be seriously worried since she's practically forcing me to be in her house, where Henry is."

"So you're just going to work all day protecting the town, and then jump right into being Regina's backyard patrol all night? When are you gonna sleep?" Mary Margaret protested.

"Oh, I never realized that...," Emma said. "Well, if it means keeping Henry safe and the mayor from going berserk, I'll do pretty much anything."

Emma filled the mugs with hot chocolate mix just as the kettle clicked off, the loud bubbling gradually growing quiet. All the while Mary Margaret sat in deep thought. Emma poured in the boiling water and a bit of cream into each mug, adding a little sprinkle of cinnamon on top, the way they both liked it.

Just as Emma gently sat the cups down on the coffee table, about to join Mary on the couch, her roommate cried out with a burst of excitement, "I've got an idea!"

Emma winced slightly at the surprise of the shout, saying, "And what is it exactly?" Then Mary Margaret took hold of Emma's hands, looked her right in the eyes and said with a big smile, "I'll go with you to Regina's house, every night! We can keep watch together!"

Emma, trying not to let the fact that Mary Margaret was completely invading her personal space cloud her thoughts, began to sort of ponder the proposal. She realized it would be nice to not have to face Regina alone, and Emma knew that she wasn't capable of avoiding all sleep for the next week and a half, no matter how much trouble she was having with getting sleep anyways. It would catch up to her eventually. And she was also the Sheriff after all, it was her duty to protect all of the town too. She had to be at her best at all times,

"I guess we could take turns keeping watch," Emma half mumbled to herself, still thinking it through. Then she said, "You can't use my gun though...," There was a moment of silence as the two of them thought over that issue. Then Emma jokingly added, "I bet you don't even know how to handle a gun anyways."

Mary Margaret's face turned red. "You really think I'm that pathetic?" "Haha, well I dunno, I don't even think I can imagine you ever wanting to kill anything, let alone fire a gun," Emma quickly added in her defence.

"Well I'll just wake you up if I see something." Mary Margaret said.

Emma looked at her roommate, then looked at their hot chocolate that was getting cold. Emma turned away from Mary and went to sip her now lukewarm drink.

"Well?" Mary Margaret asked, still waiting for Emma's answer.

"I used up the last of the cream," Emma said, after she swallowed, trying to avoid the question. "What does that have to do with anything?" Mary replied. "It means I'm going for a trip to the grocery store, you coming?"

"Answer me first."

"Fine, you can come to Regina's," Emma finally said.

She sat her empty mug down just in time for Mary Margaret's excited hug that came crashing down on her, leaving them both sprawled out and laughing on the couch.

* * *

Nightfall was coming too fast. Emma and Mary Margaret had gone to the store to get more cream, then the two of them took there time getting home. Emma had thought it would be a good idea to patrol the town for a while, just to make sure everything was as it should be. And near the end of their walk, as the wind began to get colder and the sky darker, they came upon Mr. Gold's pawn shop.

The sign was turned to 'Closed' as it always was on the weekends. The sidewalk in front of the store had not been shovelled yet, the snow was untouched. The place almost looked abandoned and a menacing aura seemed to radiate from the darkness within. No one liked going near that place. No one liked Mr. Gold.

Emma grabbed a neglected shovel leaning up nearby and began to remove the snow on the sidewalk that was around and in front of the shop entrance.

"Why are you doing that?" Mary asked as Emma forced the shovel's edge through the stiffly packed snow.

"He's got that cane of his for a reason, and all this snow isn't gonna help him much when Monday comes around," Emma replied as she heaved a heap of snow out of the way.

It only took her a few moments to clear the sidewalk and the doorway, and then Emma returned the shovel back to where she had found it, saying, "All right, lets head home," "That was very kind of you," Mary Margaret said with a warm smile. Emma could feel her cheeks warm as she looked into Mary's smiling eyes. "Yeah, well...," she said, taking her hand and turning to walk back the way they came. "Just doing my job."

* * *

Emma had just put the new cartons of cream in their fridge when Mary Margaret sat down at the kitchen table and said, "So when are we... you know," she paused as Emma quickly turned toward her, the pressure of her gaze suddenly causing Mary to feel weak. "Gonna take about us?" She finished, looking to the table and then back at her roommate. Emma sighed, and sat down adjacent to her friend.

"Well...," Emma started to say with a deep breath. But then just as she was going to continue, the phone rang. Again.

Mary let her arms fall to the table and crossed them in frustration. Then Emma groaned as she got up to answer the phone.

"Sheriff speaking," she said into the receiver.

"Ms. Swan, why aren't you at my house yet?"

It was Regina's unimpressed voice that spoke back. Emma looked at Mary and roller her eyes, then said into the phone, "I was just about to leave. And we never set a time anyways, so..." But Regina continued, saying, "The sun has set, so you should be here. Hurry up." Then she hung up.

Emma put the phone back and said, "She didn't even give me a chance to mention you," Mary sighed, "We never get phone calls, and then suddenly...," "I know, I know. Let's just get going. We've got all night to talk about it."

So Emma and Mary grabbed their coats off the rack and headed to Emma's car, where they then made their way to Regina's house in silence. Both of then thinking about what they wanted to say to the other when they would finally get a chance.

* * *

"What's she doing here?" Regina snapped.

Mary Margaret shifted her stance to partially hide behind Emma. "She's assisting me, end of story." Emma responded as she made an attempt to move past Regina and into the house. "No, I will not have this." Regina hissed back.

Emma turned to stare her in the eyes. "Look, she already knows everything that's gone on here. And you can't possibly think that I can stay up all night for days on end, do you? She's either in on it, or I give her permission to tell whoever she wants in town about your little problem. And I think it's in your best interest to not let that happen."

Regina just stared back for a few moments. It was obvious that she was burning with anger. But then she backed away, saying, "Fine, have it your way. But she's sworn to secrecy. And may I remind that neither of you are allowed near Henry. Am I clear?"

Emma turned to look at Mary, who was nodding vigorously. Then she look back at Regina, and said, "Yeah, now will you let us in?" with attitude.

Regina led them both to a windowed alcove that showed a complete view of the backyard and the forest beyond. She hit a switch on the wall nearby that lit up the darkness outside the windows. Emma could see Regina's apple tree standing on it's own, with a stub on it's side, reminding Emma of the branch that was missing. The one she had hacked off with a chainsaw. Recalling the memory gave her a bit of extra confidence.

"This is where you'll sit and keep watch. You won't move from this spot until sunrise, got it?" "Yep," Emma said. "Good, then I'll leave you to it."

"Good night," Mary Margaret meekly called to Regina when the mayor had turned to walk back towards the front of the house. Emma looked over at Mary and mouthed, 'What are you doing?' while gesturing toward the mayor. Mary responded with a defensive shrug, silently mouthing back, 'I don't know'. And just as Regina was about to disappear into the shadows of the unlit house, she said with a chuckle, "Right."

Then she was gone.

* * *

The two of them just stared out into the artificially lit night for a while. They sat on a comfortably padded bench that lined the length of the alcove. And it was all white. Everything was white in that house. And the silence weighed heavily on both of them. Both were scared to break it. And neither of them knew how or when to start a conversation.

But after a while, Emma couldn't help it but turn to look at Mary's reflection in the window. And when Mary had realized that Emma's reflection was staring at her, she tried to act natural. But she couldn't keep her cheeks from blushing. Making the intensity between them increase even more.

"You're so beautiful when you blush," Emma's voice trailing off at the end, as if she was pondering her words. Mary Margaret's chest fluttered. She instinctively raised her hands to her face out of embarrassment, wanting to cover her cheeks. But she caught herself. Not wanting to make her thoughts obvious, Mary rubbed her tired eyes instead and then lowered them back into her lap.

Emma smiled and slid a bit closer to her roommate, leaning her back against the cool glass and not taking her eyes off of Mary. Then Emma reached over and gently ran her fingers through her friend dark hair, going against it's flow and lightly caressing her scalp. Mary could feel herself melting, and having trouble catching her breath. She was becoming a tad bit disoriented. The room around her had suddenly become a lot warmer and when she closed her eyes, it felt like she was spinning every which way.

"Emma, I'm feeling a bit dizzy... I," She didn't finish though. Emma gently urged Mary to come nearer. So she laid her head down in Emma's lap, bring her legs up with her onto the bench. Then Emma continued to soothingly stroked Mary's hair.

"I don't want to fall asleep," Mary pleaded. "Talk to me, keep me awake." "Why don't you want to sleep?" Emma asked her. "I keep having these nightmare," Mary started to explain. "where Kathryn comes after me, shouting terrible things and wishing death upon me. And David... he just walks away."

There was a short silence as Emma contemplated her friends words. Then she said, "Well I have the opposite problem. I haven't been getting any sleep at all. Well, except for last night. Best sleep I've had in over a month," "Hmm, now that I think about it, I didn't dream of David and Kathryn last night...," Mary said in response.

Then she sat up beside Emma with a big smile on her face. "Maybe we're each other's antidotes," she said, then added with excitement, "Maybe it's a sign!" "What do you mean?" Emma asked, genuinely confused. Mary gave her a slightly mischievous look and said, "Think about it."

That's when it dawned on Emma. They had to be meant for each other. Then it hit them both at the exact same time. They were being drawn towards each other. Like there was a string tied between them and it was slowly growing shorter. And when the string got so short that their noses were forced to touch, they began to kiss once more.

It was a gentle kiss, at first. Then Emma kissed Mary again with the tip of her tongue brushing against Mary's upper lip. And then the third time their lips came together, both their tongue's met in the middle. After that, each time they kissed, it became more and more passionate. Mary had her hands down on the bench, pressed into the pillowed surface, trying to keep her balance, with Emma's hands however going back into Mary's hair and then travelling down her arms.

Mary couldn't help it but ever so softly moan every time Emma's tongue caressed her own. And it turned Emma on all the more. She put her hands on Mary's waist, and just as she was about to slip them under her shirt, Mary suddenly broke the kiss and backed away. Her breathing was deep and intense, along with Emma's.

"What are we doing?" Mary asked, "You're supposed to be working, I'm supposed to be sleeping...," She paused and looked at Emma. Emma was confused as well. She knew that that wasn't her. She wasn't the kind of person to just forget about her job and make out with someone out of no where. She wasn't the kind of person to just randomly fall for another so fast. And for females, well that was completely new. "We don't even know what's going on or where we both stand in all of this. Emma...,"

Emma could feel her body cooling down. She looked out the window and into the snowy, dark forest. Emma began to review the last twenty-four hours, trying to make sense of it all. Obviously they were both attracted to each other. But now her mind was clearing and suddenly Emma couldn't accept that any of it was real.

"Did you really dream of me last night?" She asked Mary, who was in a bit of a daze. "Uh, yeah," she replied in a stutter. "I did," "Can you tell me what happened in it?" Emma asked.

So Mary proceeded in telling Emma that in her dream she had been laying in her bed and Emma had come to her and kissed her forehead. Mary was beginning to feel tired, the late hours catching up with her, and she yawned uncontrollably.

"Though, I feel like I woke up before it was over," then she added, "but I think you finished my dream for me without even knowing it. That's what I hope, at least," Mary said, staring at anything but Emma as she said it. Emma was wishing she could control her thoughts. There was so much swarming around in her head that she couldn't focus on anything. And then suddenly the moment she kissed Graham took over her mind. She could recall the emotions welling up in her and exploding when Graham had touched her with such care. And when she thought of Mary, and how they'd kissed, she realized it was almost the exact same feeling. The miniscule difference was of no matter. Emma now recognized these feelings she felt for Mary and knew they were true. She wanted to touch her so much. She wanted to say Mary Margaret's name out loud for no reason except to hear it. And most of all, she didn't want to lose her, ever. Especially like how she lost Graham. If that happened, she knew she would die as well. But what Emma didn't know was how to say it to her only friend, the only true family she had in the world.

Mary's face had twisted into a concerned expression as Emma's silence continued on. Mary was watching her face attentively. And she knew something was up when she detected a hint of fear in her eyes. "What is it?" Mary asked. Emma shook her head, not able to speak. Words had left her, and only the unexplainable emotions she desperately wanted to spill out of her remained, trapped.

Mary put her arms around Emma and held her close. Emma buried her face into Mary's neck, accepting the embrace and holding onto it for dear life. Long minutes went by, when finally Mary said, "You can tell me anything, there's no need be afraid," as she let Emma go. Mary was looking at her roommate, looking for a hint or clue as to what she might be thinking. "You don't have to worry about hurting my–" But then suddenly Emma looked Mary right in the eyes, took a deep breath, and shakily said, "I think I've fallen in love with you."

Mary didn't say a thing. She wasn't shocked, she was just letting it sink in for a moment. Then replied, "Well, that's alright. It's nothing to be afraid of, because," But then she stopped when it occurred to her that she had now found herself in a new realization. They both were truly in love. Mary was sure of it. It was a strange feeling. Especially when she thought back to the first day they had met, having no clue what they'd eventually mean to one other.

"Emma, I love you too," she said back with a smile. At first Emma was just stunned and didn't say a word, but then relief started to wash over her body and Emma couldn't help but smile back. Mary awkwardly laughed and continued, "So now that we've got that out of the way, I'm gonna take a nap. Make sure to wake me in a bit so you can rest too."

Then Mary Margaret curled up on the bench beside Emma, and was soon fast asleep. Emma kept watch over the snow covered yard as her job required her to do, but occasionally turned to look at her roommate who smiled every so often in her sleep. But Emma resisted the urge to touch her new lover, as much as she wanted to.

It was 3:30 am when Emma found she was having trouble keeping her eyes open. So she gently shook Mary Margaret's shoulder, arousing her from her sleep.

"I can't stay awake, sorry," Emma whispered. "No, no, it's fine. I'll take over," Mary said sleepily as she sat up and rubbed her eyes.

Mary managed to stay awake the rest of the night, and around 7:30 am, the sun began to light up the tree tops and turn the clouds from blue to orange. So she woke Emma and then they left the house as instructed.

When they got back home to the apartment, the two of them sleepily stumbled around and ended up both crawling into Mary's bed together, sleeping the rest of the morning and into the early afternoon. And when Mary Margaret opened her eyes to see Emma's messy, golden hair shining is the rays of light that filtered into the room, she whisper's to herself, "One night down, many more to go..."

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**Whoa... first I want to say; Thank-you to everyone who has favourited and/or followed this story. Every time I get an email notifying me of it, I feel relieved that I'm not the only OUAT fan out there who views Emma and Mary Margaret the way I do. You guys rock. :D**

**Secondly... dear God this chapter turn out LONG. And it took FOREVER to edit. I know there are probably still some mistakes and things that should be worded differently, but I give up. I've already read the whole thing out loud twice and read it through a million times before that, so I'm just gonna post it now and hope for the best. If you notice a big mistake, PLEASE let me know in either a private message or review so that I can go in and fix it. I'm a perfectionist. I want it to be perfect.**

**With that said, I hope you enjoy the second chapter, of which I wanted to have done by Christmas (but it definitely wasn't even close...) and please leave an honest (but kind) review about what you liked, didn't like, and maybe suggestions on what you would want to see in future chapters. Thanks for reading and I hope to hear from you all soon. :)**


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